Road marker, temporary barricade or the like

ABSTRACT

A collapsible structure useful in marking highways, etc. as to detours, road construction and the like and complying with safety and highway regulations. This structure is made of heavy nonmetallic sheet-like material folded into triangular form to provide a base and a pair of panels joined to the base and converging to an upper apex and capable of being &#39;&#39;&#39;&#39;trampled&#39;&#39;&#39;&#39; by a vehicle striking same.

United States Patent Matson et al. [451 Sept. 12, 1972 ROAD MARKER, TEMPORARY 2,679,997 6/1954 Harris ..248/ l 74 BARRICADE OR THE LIKE 337,544 3/1886 Yaggy ..248/460 [72] Inventors: Carl G Mason, 40] E" Central 873,421 12/1907 Fleming ..248/l74 X 2,975,905 3/1961 Foland ..248/459 X Blvd., Robert Bruce Martin, 906 E. 3 490 749 H1970 A d 256/64 Prospect St., both of Kewanee, lll. n arson [22] Filed: Dec. 28, 1970 [211 App]. No.: 101,878

[52] US. Cl ..256/64 248/459 [51] Int. Cl. ..E0.lf 13/00 [58] Field of Search ..256/64; 248/459, 460, 461, 248/462, 174

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,090,157 8/1937 Smith .248/460 X Primary Examiner-Dennis L. Taylor Attorney-Harold M. Knoth [571 ABSTRACT A collapsible structure useful in marking highways, etc. as to detours, road construction and the like and "complying with safety and highway regulations. This structure is made of heavy non-metallic sheet-like material folded into triangular form to provide a base and a pair of panels joined to the base and converging to an upper apex and capable of being trampled" by a vehicle striking same.

5 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures PATENTEDsEP 12 m2 4 3*. 690.620

FIG. 4

C. G. MATSON INVENTORS R. B. MARTIN BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The relatively recent increase in new highway construction has created many problems, including marking detours, enabling temporary or limited use of completed highway portions, etc., all entailing the use of temporary barricades, markers and the like. This has been accompanied by a substantial increase in traffic accidents because of the non-regular flow of traffic, and many accidents have been caused by impact with the barricades and markers. As a consequence, a body of regulations has grown with respect to the design, construction and use of such barricades, etc., basic among which are those concerning size, markings and, above all, the capability of the barricade to yield under traffic impact without materially damaging the vehicle, without causingthe vehicle to overturn or be deflected into other traffic and without causing the barricade to become a missile capable of flying through the air and endangering the impacting vehicle or other vehicles, workmen, etc.

The known prior art includes such structures as horses, trestles and the like, constructed of various combinations of wood and metal and capable of disintegrating upon impact. Such structures are of course quite expensive and must be reassembled after each impact. Also, these structures are not easy to store, transport and assemble on the site, and, when moved from one site to another, normally must be disassembled and reassembled. Besides this, these known structures are made up of several relatively sturdy parts, each of which could become a missile. Further, if a part is lost, a careless workman may be tempted to assemble the structure improperly.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a simple, inexpensive one-piece barricade or marker, preferably made of a single sheet of non-metallic moisture-proof material capable of normally holding the triangular shape into which it is assembled but having the capacity to yield to traffic impact, even to the extent that it may be trampled by a vehicle without coming apart and sending its components flying in all directions. Because of its onepiece construction, the structure may be readily moved from one site to another without disassembly and without the danger of loss of parts. The improved structure is foldable for easy transport and storage and is simple and inexpensive to manufacture. Further, it is readily disposable after its useful life is over. Because of its triangular nature, it provides a base having an exposed upper surface which may be ballasted or weighted quite simply, as by a sandbag, a few shovels full of dirt, sand etc. This puts the ballast or weight close to the ground, so that when the structure is struck directly by a moving vehicle, the vehicle lays the structure flat and must negotiate only the bump created by the ballast.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective of an exemplary form of structure.

LII

FIG. 2 is an end view, on a somewhat reduced scale,

illustrating the weighted structure in full lines and its ability to yield in dotted lines.

FIG. 3 is a view of the sheet from which the structure is made. FIG. 4 shows a pre-folded (or pre-unfolded) condition of the structure. a

FIG. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary view illustrating -the base construction.

DESCRIPTION OF AFREF ERRED EMBODIMENT FIG. 3 will be referred to first, because it shows the pre-assembly condition of the structure, here comprising a sheet 10 of non-metallic relatively stiff but flexible material, such as moisture-proof paperboard having a strength of about 300 lbs. or more. The structure, when assembled to its FIG. 1 condition, must be capable of standing upright so as to'meet height regulations; e.g., 30 inches above the ground. The sheet is scored or otherwise preliminarily conditioned to fold along a central fold or hinge line 12, and is similarly prepared to form fold or hinge lines 14, 16 and 18. This gives the sheet a pair of panels 20 and 22 and a pair of base parts 24 and 26. The sheet may be imprinted with the required diagonals, as indicated at 27.

The sheets may be shipped as is and assembled at the site by securing the base parts 24 and 26 together in overlapping relation by any suitable stitching machine to provide securing or stitch means, as at 30.

When assembled, the base comprises the doublewalled structure in which the base part 26 is uppermost and overlies the lower base part 28, and the opposite parallel edges, afforded by the score or hinge lines 14 and 16, provides respective junctions for the upwardly converging panels 22 and 24, which, of course, meet at the hinge or fold line (apex) 12. Because the triangular structure is open i.e., not solid, the interior enables the use of weight or ballast as at 32, which serves to hold the structure in place. This weight or ballast may be a sandbag, a few shovels full of dirt or sand, etc., sufficient to prevent the barricade from blowing away. To further compensate for wind, the panels 22 and 24 may be perforated, as at 34 and 36. These openings here circular and die-cutmay be of any shape or number and further enable the use of lights etc. within the structure which may be seen through the openings.

A significant feature of the invention is the base structure, best shown in FIG. 5, wherein it is seen that the base part 28 includes the score or hinge or fold line 18. It is also seen that the unscored upper base part 26 extends from its junction 14 with the panel 22 to the panel 24; likewise, the scored (at 18) lower base part 28 extends from its fold or hinge 16 to the fold or hinge 14. The hinge or fold 18 lies intermediate the folds l4 and 16, in this case substantially centrally. The stitching 30 occurs between the hinges or folds 14 and 18 Thus the upper base part 26 is relatively rigid and the lower base part 28 is centrally foldable, yielding such features as the following: The structure, even when assembled, may be folded for transport, storage, etc. (see FIG. 4). The overlapping of the rigid upper base part 26, when weighted, prevents a reverse fold at 18; i.e., the structure must yield according to FIG. 2 (dotted lines) and cannot fold downwardly or the opposite of FIG. 5 and thus prevents the structure from rising rather than collapsing. This feature may be further enhanced, in the case of the use of corrugated paperboard, by running the corrugations between the edges 14 and 16, creating greater resistance to unfolding in the wrong direction. For example, if the structure were capable of folding upwardly about the hinge 18, uncontrolled by the rigid upper base part 26, the structure would increase in height and would trap the ballast 32 and the device would become a missile, because the ballast could separate to opposite sides of a theoretical hinge 18 plus a fold in the part 26. So long as the part 26 is rigid, the ballast spreads out over the entire part, giving results such as shown in FIG. 2 (dotted lines).

Even if the dirt, sand, etc. at 32 becomes frozen, it is not a serious obstacle to an overrunning vehicle, because the ballast is low and may be easily run over or trampled along with the rest of the structure. Of course, after a few accidents the structure may have become useless, but its cheap construction makes it readily disposable.

We claim:

1. A road marking structure. such as a temporary barricade of the like yieldable to traffic impact, comprising a generally rectangular flat base adapted to rest on the ground and having first and second parallel edges and a pair of panels joined respectively to said edges and converging upwardly to meet and be joined together at an apex spaced a substantial height above the ground, said structure being made up of a single sheet of relatively stiff non-metallic material preliminarily prepared to fold along a plurality of fold lines respectively at the apex andat the junctions of said panels with said base edges, said base including an upper base part joined at one base edge with one panel and a lower base part joined at the other base edge with the other panel, said upper base part overlapping the lower base part to give the base as a whole a substantial area of double thickness so as to minimize downward being of said base, and means securing said parts together, at least said top base part providing an upper surface adapted to receive a weight to hold said structure in place and said fold lines providing hinges so that upon impact by a vehicle against one panel, said one panel is capable of yielding to the impact about its hinge with the base and its apex hinge and the other panel is also capable of yielding about its base hinge and the apex hinge, whereby the entire structure is capacitated to collapse as the vehicle passes over the collapsed structure.

2. The invention defined in claim 1, in which the upper part overlies a major portion of the lower base part and is free from fold lines, said lower base part including a fold line parallel to and intermediate said base edges, and said base parts are joined together in the area between said lower base part fold line and the junction of said upper base part with its panel, so that the structure may be substantially flattened for packing and storing.

3. The invention defined in claim 2, in which the upper base part extends from its junction with its panel to the opposite panel, the lower base part extends from its junction with its panel to the other panel, the lower base part fold line is substantially centered between said base edges, and the base parts are joined together f l lig i r vention defined in claim 1 in which the converging panels are perforated to permit light and air to pass therethrough.

5. The invention defined in claim 1 in which said sheet is substantially moisture proof paper having a strength of approximately 300 lbs. 

1. A road marking structure such as a temporary barricade of the like yieldable to traffic impact, comprising a generally rectangular flat base adapted to rest on the ground and having first and second parallel edges and a pair of panels joined respectively to said edges and converging upwardly to meet and be joined together at an apex spaced a substantial height above the ground, said structure being made up of a single sheet of relatively stiff non-metallic material preliminarily prepared to fold along a plurality of fold lines respectively at the apex and at the junctions of said panels with said base edges, said base including an upper base part joined at one base edge with one panel and a lower base part joined at the other base edge with the other panel, said upper base part overlapping the lower base part to give the base as a whole a substantial area of double thickness so as to minimize downward being of said base, and means securing said parts together, at least said top base part providing an upper surface adapted to receive a weight to hold said structure in place and said fold lines providing hinges so that upon impact by a vehicle against one panel, said one panel is capable of yielding to the impact about its hinge with the base and its apex hinge and the other panel is also capable of yielding about its base hinge and the apex hinge, whereby the entire structure is capacitated to collapse as the vehicle passes over the collapsed structure.
 2. The invention defined in claim 1, in which the upper part overlies a major portion of the lower base part and is free from fold lines, said lower base part including a fold line parallel to and intermediate said base edges, and said base parts are joined together in the area between said lower base part fold line and the junction of said upper base part with its panel, so that the structure may be substantially flattened for packing and storing.
 3. The invention defined in claim 2, in which the upper base part extends from its junction with its panel to the opposite panel, the lower base part extends from its junction with its panel to the other panel, the lower base part fold line is substantially centered between said base edges, and the base parts are joined together as aforesaid.
 4. The invention defined in claim 1 in which the converging panels are perforated to permit light and air to pass therethrough.
 5. The invention defined in claim 1 in which said sheet is substantially moisture proof paper having a strength of approximately 300 lbs. 